by Willow Mason
“What any familiar does. Companionship. A tight bond. Another person being reliant upon you. Besides, Aloysius does have some abilities. He can take a spell, turn it into dust, and blow it into a recipient’s face.”
A key scene from The Rusty Nail’s CCTV clicked into place. “You prepared the spell to alter Brianna.”
“And displace the pair of them from the bar, reappearing here,” Marlon said glumly.
I tipped my head forward in respect. That was some powerful juju right there. “Why don’t they just take your magic, if that’s all they need you for?”
“My powers come from black magic. Any supreme can strip a witch of their white magic against their will, but black magic has to be given willingly.” Marlon touched the chain around his collar. “But they’ve still found a way to control us.”
“What did he show you?”
Marlon backed up a step, staring towards his own strip window. “My Binky,” he whispered. “She’s been my familiar for over sixty years. Aloysius has her somewhere in the town, under lock and key.”
Too old for a cat or dog. “Binky’s your reptile familiar?”
“My tortoise.” A tear rolled down Marlon’s cheek.
A bark from the window drew my attention, and I hurried over just in time to catch a pen Porangi shoved through the grate.
“Help. Not a pen. Please, fetch help.”
Porangi yapped in agreement, then tore off on a new mission.
“I don’t know what you expect of him,” Beezley said from his corner. “He can’t even talk to witches, let alone humans.”
“There’re no humans here,” Marlon called out. “The Briary is one hundred percent witch and warlock.”
“Really?” I’d never heard of such a thing before. Co-existence was the norm. “Surely, that means it’s an even bigger travesty for them to hold us as prisoners.”
“Only if someone was interested and having no humans means the supernatural council doesn’t pay attention. They’re only interested in what happens when witch and human intersect.”
“That can’t be right. If they knew what was going on here—”
“And who’s going to tell them? Us or those frightened folks living in thrall to the supreme who you saw this morning? They’re cowed by him. No one’s ever going to spill the beans.”
I tapped my foot, my gaze alternating between the window and the peephole. “We could try Brianna or Delia.”
“The ones who betrayed us?” Beezley snapped his teeth in the air. “Not likely.”
“They’re the only ones in town who’d know this behaviour isn’t normal. Even if they’re willing to trade our capture for a cure, they must see how wrong everything is here.”
“And it won’t occur to them to do anything until it’s too late. The Briary has a way of seducing witches into complacency.”
Beezley laid his head down on his paws. “First, they came for our animus healer, and we said nothing.”
“Exactly.” Marlon jerked his chin at Beezley. “You’ve got a smart brain hiding in that dogsbody. Listen to him.”
Like I could avoid listening to him when we spent virtually all day long in each other’s company.
Another bark at the window and Porangi fed a tangle of Christmas lights through the bars. Before I could say anything, he took off again, his little legs working like a champ.
“We can start a pile of all the useless things Porangi brings us instead of getting help,” Beezley said, lumbering to his feet and sniffing at the small bulbs.
“You know, if you stop looking at the lights, what we have here is a long rope made of plastic and metal, with a row of easily shattered glass that would hurt like crazy if it broke while tied around you.”
“Are you planning to lasso a guard?”
I shrugged. “It’s not the stupidest idea. We just need one to wander into our cells.”
“Then we can jab them in the eye with the pen.”
“Now you’re talking.” I shared a grin with Beezley, and the atmosphere lightened.
Porangi next brought us a colourful medal with a sticky back, followed by a small notebook secured with a lock. While I was busy breaking that by hefting it against the side of the tub, he finally pushed something useful through the bars. A knife clattered onto the floor and I leapt for it.
“This could help, either with the guards or getting my neck chain off.” After inserting the blade between my neck and the chain, I couldn’t make much headway just pushing. The back of the restraint dug painfully into the knobbly bits of my spine and when I gave up, panting, a tingle ran along my arms.
“Get down on the floor.” Beezley sniffed along the length of the room, then jumped on one spot. “This is solid stone. If you press the knife against—”
But I didn’t need to let him finish. My hip was pressed against the compacted dirt and the tiny leverage I could manage was concentrated on the knife blade within the second.
“Perhaps there’s a lock I could pick with the blade,” I said a few minutes later. My hands pulsed, flooded with red in an outline of the handle. “The metal doesn’t have any give.”
Beezley snuffled close, turning his head so one eye then the other could have an intimate examination. “It hasn’t scored a line, but the metal seems to have a crack in it. Keep going.”
With that faint encouragement, I set to work again.
Half an hour later, my hands were throbbing like arthritis with a storm coming and my cheek had a permanent blush from being grazed against the floor. The angle I had to use for any leverage at all sent waves of blood into my head.
Everything from my eyelids to my lips was engorged, pulsing in time with my heartbeat. I’d begun to wish a guard would come to the cell so I could stop trying when the chain snapped in two.
The blade skidded along the floor and my head jerked up. My arm and shoulder muscles were so tense, they stayed locked in position for a few seconds after I came free.
“Success!” I held the chain up, swinging it in victory. “Now, what do you think the odds are I can get us out of here without bringing the entire building crashing down?”
“Still minimal. A dinner party on the other hand…”
A fantastic idea. Hopefully one that would also throw some light onto where they were holding Marlon’s familiar kidnapped. It didn’t sit right for us to leave without freeing him from his captors as well.
I stood up, brushing the worst of the dirt off me, and knocked on the connecting panel. “Would you like to try?” I asked, holding the knife out to Marlon. He took the blade but held it loosely in his fingers rather than setting to work on his neck.
“Call me a coward, but I don’t dare to. Not with Binky still in their hands.”
“Keep it,” I said when he tried to pass the knife back to me. “I’ve got this to protect me.” My hands glowed crimson as the black magic swirled through me.
I felt restless with the victory and danced around the cell. Porangi came to the barred window, this time empty-mouthed, and I patted his head as best I could.
“The supernatural council!” I exclaimed, turning to the notebook I’d broken open earlier and tearing out a page. “They might ignore The Briary in their general supervision but that doesn’t mean they won’t come when called.”
“How does one call upon them?” Beezley asked with his eyebrows shooting up his skull.
“One writes them a letter,” I said, not knowing if it would work at all. Help. Being held prisoner at The Briary. Bad magic.
I tucked the note inside Porangi’s collar and held his face between my hands. “You must take this to the supernatural council, quick as you can. We might fail in a face-to-face fight with whoever’s pulling Aloysius’s strings, but they won’t. Hurry!”
Porangi barked once and tore across the field opposite with his little legs pumping as fast as they could.
“Forgive me if I don’t feel optimistic about his chances.”
“Putting some good vibes int
o the world wouldn’t hurt for a change.” I picked up the chain and examined it, wondering if I should hurl it outside so it couldn’t be roped around my neck again.
Then I heard the footsteps outside my cell. I pulled the chain around my neck, using the strange sticker Porangi had brought us to hold it in place. It wouldn’t hold for long, but I hoped it wouldn’t need to.
At the first sign of a tortoise familiar, we were out of here.
“Are you ready?” Aloysius called out. “We’ve brought the dinner forward and are having a late lunch.”
His nose tipped into the air when he saw the state of us, markedly dirtier than when he’d seen us last. “I’d understand if you weren’t the cleanest people in the world but it’s obvious none of you has made an effort.”
“We thought we had more time,” I answered simply, holding my neck stiff so the collar wouldn’t rub.
“Well, you don’t. You’re meant to be a surprise and you look like mud people.”
“A mud dog, thank you very much,” Beezley snarled, affronted.
“I can’t believe you’ll be seated next to our honoured leader when you need a bath.” Aloysius sniffed again, wrinkling his nose until I wanted to punch it.
“Next time we’re kidnapped and held prisoner, I’m sure we’ll behave better.”
The sarcasm sailed straight over his head. “Next time is too late for me. Ah, there we are!”
Aloysius darted forward, pulling a chair out at the head of a long dinner table, festooned with decorations and sporting the fanciest cutlery I’d ever seen. While a bearded man with straight, dark hair sat where Aloysius gestured, I picked up Beezley and deposited him behind his nameplate, before taking my own seat.
In the past few hours, Aloysius had been very busy. As I stole curious glances at the man seated nearby, I couldn’t help but wonder what all the effort was for. He didn’t seem impressive to me.
“Now, I have a surprise for you, Sire. Two guests brought all the way from Fernwood Gully for your amusement.” I had a gulp of water in my mouth when Aloysius pointed to me. “Your daughter and her canine companion.”
My mouthful of drink sprayed everywhere as I took in what he’d said.
The man seated at the head of the table was my father.
Chapter Eleven
If I was astounded, my father was distinctly unimpressed.
“I’ve told you on multiple occasions, I’m not interested in parenting. Why on earth did you bring these two such a long way?”
I rubbed my chest and tried another tentative sip of water. This time, the liquid went down the right way, doing nothing to lessen the sting of rejection.
“I’m not in need of a parent if anyone had thought to ask me,” I muttered, staring darkly at my glass.
“Sire, there’s more to her than meets the eye.”
“Yes. I presume she’s the origin of the rather unpleasant smell, too.”
I daintily rearranged the cutlery in front of me, lingering with pleasure on the knife. The tip of the blade might be dull and rounded, but that just meant it wouldn’t stick in a man’s ribs on the way to piercing his heart.
The thought made me smile.
“Aloysius, I’ve gone to a lot of trouble to come home for this dinner. Are you telling me this unwanted familial reunion is the only reason why?”
“With respect, at the beginning of the year, you wondered aloud how your daughter turned out. Well, now you know!”
“You couldn’t bring me a photo? Hack her social media feed?”
I cleared my throat since I was apparently invisible. The two men briefly turned to me, then resumed glaring at each other.
“Charming family you have,” Beezley said, jumping enthusiastically into the middle of the table when a waiter brought out a platter of cold meats and cheeses. “No wonder you live with a dog.”
“She can do black magic,” I heard Aloysius shout in his vain attempt to prove my value. “I’ve seen her bring down a hotel with a single pulse.”
“Really?” For the first time, my father turned to me with an appraising stare. “Show me something.”
“She’s collared at the moment.” Aloysius bowed and simpered. “But I’ve got something better than a magic show planned.”
His tone sent a wriggle of fear snaking down my spine. I reached for the nape of my neck, pretending to scratch as I plucked the sticker loose. My mum had told me as a child that my father’s absence was ‘no loss.’ Until now, sitting here in his unimpressed company, I hadn’t felt the depths of the anger behind her words.
No one with a shred of human decency would act the way these two acted. Even my admittedly poor manners seemed stolen from a guidebook to polite society in comparison.
The collar came apart, and I tossed it on the table, standing up with crimson light swathed around my hands. “I think it’s time we left,” I announced, acting as though I was about to sweep out of there like a floozy on her way to a date with a bottle.
Aloysius stood and held his hands out towards me. “Wait! We haven’t got to the best bit yet!”
I moved my hands around, letting the spells sing their song louder. Beezley took shelter behind me but was the only one who seemed impressed. “I said, we’re leaving.”
“Not until I make you an offer.” Aloysius wiped his thumb over his lower lip—a gesture that made me want to retch. “Besides, you’re not going to risk doing anything with all these people standing around, are you? Flying cutlery and glass can do as much damage as a nail bomb.”
My confidence deflated. Black magic needed drama and urgency to work out okay. Even Aloysius and his sickening grin didn’t really make the grade. We were just guests at a dinner party who didn’t want to be there.
With my mind collapsing in confusion, I dropped my hands to my side. “What’s the best bit?”
Guards marched Marlon into a space opposite us. His gaze was fixed on the ground and his shoulders were slumped. If Beezley was the one being held to random instead of Binky, I could imagine my dejection would rank the same.
“I have an offer for your magic!” Aloysius shouted. His theatrics made me so tired I wanted to sit down. “Our resident animus healer will change your dog back into the man he used to be.”
Beezley pushed forward, his eagerness spilling over. I grabbed at his collar, but he was already on the table, out of reach. “Yes. Yes, change me back!”
“Marlon, can you do this?”
The old man raised his eyes and gave me a sad smile. He inclined his head, then his gaze fixed on the table, his eyes widening as he gave a gasp.
Aloysius didn’t notice, ploughing ahead with his grand gesture though the recipient of his attention remained indifferent. My father sat with his head propped on one hand. If he lost any more focus, it would go sliding off to bang on the table.
“All you need to give up in return are the occult spells residing inside your body. Return them to their rightful owner and Marlon will perform his magic, after which you’re all free to leave.”
My father snapped to attention, leaning over and pressing his head against my stomach. When I flinched away, he grabbed me by the waist and ignored my hits on his head.
“Isn’t it a good deal, Sire?” Aloysius asked, smiling broadly. “How d’you like your surprise now?”
I shoved my father’s head away, cradling my abdomen as the spells sang their familiar and entrancing song inside my body. “What do you mean, the rightful owner?”
“They’re mine.” My father stretched out a hand to pat my belly while his expression transformed into one of adoration. I jerked away again, this time moving a few steps back for safety. “When the coven at Fernwood Gully kicked me out, they refused to return them. Those old witches thought they were so clever, getting my best work and storing it in a secret location.”
His eyes drifted up to meet mine, appearing dazed. Then his attention dropped, fixing instead on Aloysius. “Good work. I underestimated you, but this is worth a prize.”<
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The familiar’s body twisted with rapture. It was time to bring this love-fest to an end. “I’m not giving my spells up.”
Beezley’s head whipped around. “Yes, you are.”
“They’re the only reason you’re still alive. How can you think I’d give them up, just like that?” I snapped my fingers.
“You can’t even use them,” Beezley growled, shaking with frustration. “If they were so great, you’d have got us out of the prison cell or away from the guards or realised this entire trip was a fiasco to trap us in the first place! They did nothing. They do nothing.”
“I stopped—”
“What? A witch misusing voodoo? Big deal. If I were in my real body, I could’ve achieved the same result with a baton and a taser.”
He moved to the very edge of the table, his shoulders hunching and every hair on his back standing on end. “If they were worth anything, the spells would’ve changed me back to human long before now. You’re too scared to even try!”
Aloysius clapped his hands with excitement. “Do we have a deal?”
“You can’t trust him,” I shouted to Beezley. “Can’t you see he’s pure evil? You can’t expect me to do a deal with the devil and walk away with everything turning out alright.”
“I swear on my mother’s life.” Aloysius held his hand up and stared to the sky. “In fact, I’m so honourable, I’ll let Marlon perform the change before you turn the spells over to your father.” He tapped a finger on his chin. “You really can’t do better than that.”
“Or we could just take them.” My father lunged for me again, this time digging his fingers into my wrist and dragging me closer.
“You can’t take black magic without consent,” I yelled, desperately hoping Marlon had been right about that. “If you try, I’ll report you to the supernatural council.”
He snorted but let my arm go. “Those imbeciles,” he said, though his eyes were wary. He picked up a fork from the place setting and dug its prongs into his napkin. “There’s more than one way to get consent.”
“Hey, now. We can keep everything civil.” Aloysius clasped his hands behind his back and rocked onto the balls of his feet. “I think I’ve laid out a fair deal. What say you?”